University of Evansville redshirt senior Blake Simmons has joined his father, Marty, in the Purple Aces' 1,000-point club and has a record of 79-54 entering Saturday's game against Southern Illinois.(Photo: DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS)Buy Photo

Story Highlights

EVANSVILLE — Growing up, Blake Simmons rarely heard stories about his father’s playing days at Indiana University. Occasionally, around Christmastime, they might pop in a VHS tape of an old IU-Kentucky game to watch. But that was about the extent of it.

Marty Simmons loves to talk about his time as a student-athlete at Evansville, though. He transferred to the Purple Aces in 1985, the first year under head coach Jim Crews, who was an assistant under Bob Knight for the Hoosiers while Simmons was there. Crews has told Blake that nobody changed the culture like his father immediately did even though he was forced to redshirt that season.

“Just hearing how great of a leader he was and how he demanded excellence,” Blake said.

Three decades later, that is one of the most important attributes Blake has brought in more than 4,000 minutes on the court in his career at his dad’s alma mater. Saturday figures to be the last time he will step onto Arad McCutchan Court as a player when UE (16-14, 6-11 Missouri Valley) hosts Southern Illinois (19-11, 11-6) on senior day. Tipoff is 1 p.m. at Ford Center.

Simmons and fellow seniors Duane “Boo” Gibson and Dalen Traore will be commemorated briefly about 10 minutes before the game. The ceremony and speeches will take place following the game.

While it’s the final chapter of their playing careers, Simmons knows it won’t signify the end of relationships.

That wasn’t the case for Marty Simmons and former teammates like Scott Haffner. Any time they see each other, Blake says they almost get tears in their eyes because of the hundreds of hours spent together on and off the court and the brotherhood they built.

That is the silver lining on a day that will be overwhelmingly emotional for the players and coaches.

“I love seeing former players come back because those guys stay connected like a family and I know that’s how it’s going to be with me and my teammates,” Blake Simmons said. “I know that’s how it is with D.J. (Balentine), Adam (Wing) and all those guys. It’s an awesome experience being an Evansville athlete.”

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University of Evansville's Blake Simmons (50) is introduced as the University of Evansville plays Illinois State on West Side Day at the Evansville Ford Center Saturday, December 23, 2017.(Photo: MIKE LAWRENCE / COURIER & PRESS)

It’s an experience Blake will have in common with his dad and will talk about for years to come. But it hasn’t been quite the same experience.

Blake, a Newburgh native, has played in front of his family and friends whereas Marty was an hour away from his hometown of Lawrenceville, Illinois. As comforting as that may sound for Blake, he’s been under a microscope and that lens is zoomed in 100 times as the coach’s son.

College is supposed to be some of the most enjoyable years of a person’s life. Marty told Blake they were also going to be some of the toughest.

Both were prepared for cries of nepotism. Complicating matters was the fact that Blake was bound to make his career out of being a good screener within the offense. He wouldn’t have gaudy statistics as a role player in a program that features a system where one player carries most of the offensive load.

The way Blake handled it was by believing the only microscope he was playing under was one used by his coaches and teammates. To that end, Marty believes Blake did an exceptional job representing what Evansville basketball is all about.

“I don’t think playing for your father is the easiest thing for most kids to do, especially in your hometown,” Marty said. “I think he’s handled it with class. He’s been one of our hardest workers, most unselfish guys and has done anything and everything we’ve asked him to do. From my standpoint, he couldn’t have made it any easier because of those things.”

Even in a process-oriented system, Marty and Blake Simmons were together for the two best Aces’ teams this century.

Evansville went 24-12 and won the CollegeInsider.com Tournament when Blake was a sophomore in 2014-15. The following year, UE went 25-9 and was a lucky bounce by Northern Iowa’s Wes Washpun away from forcing overtime in the MVC Tournament championship game and potentially advancing to the program’s first NCAA Tournament since 1999.

Along the way, Simmons joined his dad in the program’s 1,000-point club and has a record of 79-54 entering Saturday. Those are invaluable moments they can relive for the rest of their lives.

“I’m very thankful that he gave me that opportunity not only to coach him the last five years,” Marty said, “but most times when kids get into college they leave home and you don’t get to spend the quality time I have with him the last five years.”

Simmons will graduate with a bachelors degree in marketing and a 3.86 cumulative GPA.

He remains interested in continuing the family legacy and becoming a coach, but seems to be leaning towards the business field. He had an internship last summer with Berry Global and will explore opportunities off the court at first.

If Simmons does decide to get into coaching, it should come to no surprise that he will carry over the old-school motion offense he’s learned from his dad.

“I think it works, plain and simple,” he said. “If you run it correctly and do it the right way, I don’t think there’s a way it can be stopped.”